Buses are needed for students and workers between 7am and 9.30am, the shoppers need a bus between 10am and 1pm, then students again at 3pm and 4pm and workers between 5pm and 6.30pm.
Afternoon shoppers are more casual, so the best way to address their need is to have two buses covering the whole area east to west and west to east - start them at 10am and run until 5pm, then cut that service in half until evenings, then run a shorter service until 10.30pm.
Do not give a free service to gold card holders, reduce the fare to 50 cents or a dollar.
Running empty buses all day - as happens now is pointless.
Jim Adams
Rotorua
Landlords not all the same
I cannot be your only reader wearied by your correspondent Jim Adams repeatedly spouting his views about the landlord system in property ownership?
This system has existed since Roman times, through the Middle Ages and flourishes throughout the world.
Like any system, it's certainly not perfect and so-called rogue landlords need bringing to order by stricter regulations maybe. But painting all by one big, brush is unjust. (Abridged)
William Wright
Rotorua
Kiwi diplomacy
Your correspondent Audrey Young (Opinion, November 20) is either very young or has a very poor memory when she refers to Kiwi diplomacy as being that of the classic honest broker.
She must have forgotten Don McKinnon our Foreign Minister in the mid 60s and East Timor.
East Timor was a colony of Portugal until 1974. It became an independent country until invaded by Indonesia. It fiercely resisted the occupiers who savagely slaughtered innocent people.
All the countries that had supported Indonesia had disappeared by 1961 but the Kiwi honest brokers, as late as 1965, declared that East Timor's integration into Indonesia was irreversible.
We had assistance and trade links with Indonesia and were about to hold joint air exercises.
We learned that six East Timorese members of the resistance were executed by the Indonesian Army. McKinnon's only comment to that was that the Indonesian Air Force could not be held responsible for their army killings.
He also stated that happenings in Indonesia were being "fenced off" from other New Zealand/Indonesia relations and that "you don't throw off 90 per cent of your policy because of the problems of the other 10 per cent".
How flippant McKinnon was about the other 10 per cent when up to 200,000 were needlessly massacred.
And what did we do? On his retirement from politics, we gave him a knighthood and named a street after him in Albany. Honest brokers my foot.
Martin Gis
Rotorua
Hospital needs more signage
Re Marie Booth's letter of November 17 regarding the amazing staff at the Rotorua Hospital and replying to my earlier letter.
She is absolutely correct. Recently I had to take my mother up there again and apart from not enough disabled parking available at the entrance we had an enjoyable experience.
As we entered through the front doors a chap appeared with a wheelchair and waited while I parked the car, about, it seemed a kilometre away (I'm only a pensioner after all).
Then we went to x-ray and on to the consultation with the orthopaedic surgeon. The plaster man took over and after he had finished, kindly wheeled Mother out to wait while I retrieved the car.
My only concern is that I have visited this hospital many times and I didn't know that the wheelchairs were available.
Maybe the staff are familiar but the general public are basically ignorant of what is available.
I strongly suggest that a really prominent sign be erected at the entrance. (Abridged)
Andy Watson
Rotorua
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